After one term on the Juneau Assembly, Ruth Danner says she won’t seek reelection this fall.

Danner says she came to realize over the last year that assembly service doesn’t match her skill set.

“I’ve learned a lot and I’m happy about that and I hope to take what I’ve learned and use it for helping our community grow in other ways,” Danner says.

Specifically, she plans to stay involved in the Juneau Homeless Coalition and housing issues in general. She also says she’d be willing to serve on other municipal advisory boards or commissions.

Since joining the assembly, Danner has been involved in a pair of very public spats with other members and city staff. In April, she was very nearly censured for accusing the city’s Law Department of lying to the Planning Commission. This month, she’s been embroiled in a back-and-forth with Port Director Carl Uchytil over the use of a new boat lift at two different harbor facilities.

Danner has been criticized in some circles for not clearly understanding how city government operates. But she says she won’t apologize for how she’s handled the controversies.

“I suspect that I am always going to be Ruth Danner,” she says. “When I ran for office in the first place, I said right up front I was nobody’s politician. I’m no politician. I’m just not.”

Danner says she’s encouraging as many people as she can to run for her seat. She says at least one potential candidate has contacted her to express interest.

The filing period for the municipal election opens August 3rd and closes ten days later. Election day is October 2nd.

An online controversy spread to the halls of city government in Anchorage on Tuesday, with accusations flying about fake news, liberal media bias and a militant Islamic training camp in Wasilla that does not exist.

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